7. Bright colors, either just for fun or to support a cause (rainbow, pink).

8. Silly, sassy, scary, quirky and evil clowns.

9. Disney princesses (not real princesses).

10. Goth and glam.

My 2-year-old, Bettie, is being a princess for Halloween. A real one. Not a pretend one. Don't ask her which princess she's being, because that will get you a scowl. That's as ridiculous as asking Grandma which grandma she's being. Duh. She is Grandma.

Because the predictable and cliche makes me break out in hives, I will probably dump a bucket of pig's blood over her head as we walk out the front door, a la "Carrie." Her tears will add to the character.

I, on the other hand, am being a pumpkin, according to Bettie and no degree of my personal consent. Yes, the lamest adult costume possible. If you're under the age of 5 or severely pregnant, cute. I'm neither; therefore, tragic. My daughter's already stealing my swagger.

I must not be the first mother to suffer this sentence, because I found a long list of "sexy pumpkin" costumes online. Basically just skimpy orange dresses -- the same pattern as everything Leg Avenue but in different colors. I also found "sexy" Osama bin Laden, Big Bird, yeti, skunk, sock monkey and baby in a highchair costumes. I would rather be Charlie Brown's frumpy Great Orange Gord.

According to the National Retail Federation, seven of 10 Americans are dressing up this Halloween, the highest number in at least a decade. Spending is up, too. But what really spooks me is the nearly 7 percent who say they wear the same costume every year.

Maybe you don't have time to daydream costume ideas (although Americans do have $8 billion to spend on the holiday). Since I don't have the power to take on the tantrum of a 2-year-old and define my own Halloween fate, I have done the daydreaming for you.

According to Savers, 695 S. Broadway St. in Boulder, 31 percent of y'all won't start thinking about your costume until a week before. So here are some Halloween costume ideas for 2012:

Make a statement. Assert that nudity is not pornography and go as a neked Ai Weiwei fan. That'll one-up those French maids and Little Bo Peep strippers.

Savers says nearly 40 percent of people surveyed plan to dress as a political figure. Also worth noting: 57 percent said that choosing a costume is more stressful than deciding whom to vote for in the upcoming big election.

Emerald Herzog, a sales associate at Boulder's Theatrical Costumes, Etc., shows what you might look like if you chose to dress as a Sexy Cheshire Cat for Halloween. (Jessica Cuneo /For the Camera )

Put a hipster spin on anything. Take fill-in-the-blank costume and pair it with thick-frame hipster glasses and a sharp dose of irony.

Bring the screen to life. Whether it's Lisbeth Salander from "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," Sookie Stackhouse from "True Blood," Effie Trinket from "The Hunger Games" or Merida from "Brave," movies and TV provide endless inspiration. So do books; so, go on and be Christian Grey and his confused little sub -- but don't forget to sign the contract before you trick this treat.

Savers says other popular influences include "Snow White and the Huntsman," "The Avengers" and "The Walking Dead." Savers says 40 percent of costume-wearers plan to draw inspiration from movies and TV.

Go old school. Simon and Garfunkel are not just fun to say, and Clue is not just fun to play.

Make it yourself. Get ideas from Pinterest (where else?). Here, you can find links to guides for making an owl costume out of fabric or construction paper; fluffy chicken costumes; or a jellyfish out of a wide-brimmed hat, bubble packaging and ribbon.

Marthastewart.com has a great list, too, including "Leg Crawlers:" Affix rubber cockroaches with eyelash glue to one leg, crawling up your skirt. Or into your giant orange pumpkin and out the top, into your ear. Maybe subtle terror can save me this year.

Just hit the stores. Theatrical Costumes Etc., 669 S. Broadway St., just expanded this week into a second permanent location a few doors down in the same shopping center. Here, you can find more than 60,000 masks, accessories, hats, wigs and more than 800 costume types, according to owner Debra Ordway.

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